Awesome video, your videos have been the most helpful I've found for how to use my Tiag. You mentioned the top view camera which is awesome. If you do more I would swap the top view camera persepective so it's from your view. That way it matches the perspective of the user and you don't have to swap to the other side of the mill to line a tool up in the same perspective. Hope you make more of these!
Glad I watched your video. I was considering a Taig lathe but after seeing just how much manual manipulation must be done, I don’t think its the machine for me. Thank you
If you catch the end of the file on the rotating chuck jaws, you may need to have the file surgically removed! I have launched a couple wood blocks on my table saws, but have taken care to stand off center, so they missed. File handles are recommended too.
another excellent video, how about doing one for attaching a screw less vise to the taig milling attachment, the vise they offer works but the addition of a small 2 inch screw less would increase the use and accuracy of the taig
Excellent video. I have just got one of these lathes and am so impressed at how clear you are in your videos. I would like to make some chess pieces, maybe an idea for a video of yours...?
Good idea! I’ve seen some very tiny chess pieces made on the Taig along with a tiny box to hold them and the board. Thanks for the feedback, I will get back to making some more videos soon. Chess pieces now on the list :)
Please, please do not use a file without a wooden handle on a lathe. For those who are inexperienced , if the chuck jaws catch the file even by the slightest amount the file will be kicked back and the sharp tang will peneterate your hand. A visit to A&E is not what you want on a Sunday morning or any other day for that matter. Only use a file with a well fitted round wooden handle.
To add to this, never file reaching over the headstock, that is a really bad idea. hold the file facing the headstock opposite of how we observed in this video. One slip and you are crashing your wrist into a rotating headstock that will happily rip your hand off.
Are you still open for questions? I have a Taig 1 (?), one of the first. Shop is not more. Bought it so 30 years ago. Did not use it often and it did , looked like, ok. Love it and now I have more time for the Taig and try to improve it. But, found a few strange things in it, simply because I use it more. Missing rings, bolds that ware not properly bored or tapped and so on. Simple things but do not like them. Where can I ask for some help in this matter? You?
I've been going back and forth between getting a Taig or a Harbor Freight mini-lathe. The Taig looks like it has an excellent build quality, but as this would be my first lathe I wonder if the lack of a leadscrew and gearing would hamper my learning. Not to mention the Harbor Freight costs half as much as the Taig. Do you have any recommendation? I'm still waffling.
That's a tough call. I've used a friend's HF mini lathe it worked well. His used steel gibs (vs brass) and didn't come with collets or a drill chuck. The gears were plastic, basically every corner was cut but still it is a reasonable deal with the 20% coupon. I don't think you'd regret either purchase. The Taig is quite a bit higher quality and more portable. Also it comes with ER collets, tooling, and drill chuck at the similar price point (is much lower cost without). As for threading the Taig can only do so with dies and taps so you are limited to standard diameters. One advantage of single point threading is you can thread at a wide range of diameters so if you plan to need that I'd pick the HF unit. If you just want to tinker and play around I'd recommend the Taig and if the machining bug takes, then jump a couple levels to a larger lathe, not just a mini. I ended up buying an old used 13 inch south bend with gear change box and the thing is, the Taig still gets used. I like the Taig for very small things and of course the south bend for larger. Hope that helps!
Parting off a 1” steel rod. I’m used to doing much smaller pieces and working with brass or aluminum. I’ve been struggling with this hunk of steel for a week and ruined all the work I’ve done so far trying to part it off.
Melissa Boling - I should do a parting video! Are you using the standard parting tool or the back post version? What type of steel? If parting goes south, just use a hack saw. Always use cutting oil with steel. Low speed, continuous feed, try and keep a chip going. Make sure the tool is square and sharp... probably more tips I haven’t thought of!
Have you thought about getting a carbide holder for aluminium inserts? You could turn and face with the tool in the same position. The lathe would find it so much easier, as the high rake on the insert should require much less power.
this is done very well. i'd like to add a caution- never ever ever let the far end of a file or any tool approach the spinning jaws and always hold the tool in such a way that if the jaw smacks it it will send it flying rather than hammer it into your hand. don't ask how i learned that, plz.
Thanks sig! and good point on the file... always have to use caution with machine tools. The Taig is relatively safe compared with larger lathes. I've managed to do a few silly things that fortunately did not result in injury due to the Taig's smaller size.
The power feed is great! It’s a clever and elegant design. However it’s a little tricky to explain to folks... I might do a short video just going over that feature.
I have a crazy idea of buying buying a Taig lathe with power feed without the headstock. I will custom make a head stock with taper roller bearings. The spindle will be threaded to fit my 1"-8 scroll chucks I recently purchased. I have a bar of 303 stainless I will use for spindle. This material is easy to thread with a very smooth surface. I wish it was 416, The usefulness and quality of the power feed will determine if I go with this option. I would like to see close details of the power feed in use. My plan is to take a heavier cut without chatter than what is possible with the standard lathe. Yes I realize many factors come into play. I plan on eliminating two of them.
My basic lathe with power feed is on order. I have the bearings and aluminum for a 1"-8 headstock and am working on my tailstock with 4" of travel. This machine is on steroids. I like to help out the American Taig whenever possible.
I considered it but then saw that youtuber "sig other" did a conversion and offered it for sale a while back. Taig now offers a version of their Mill base modified for CNC lathe work. Here is sig other's vid ua-cam.com/video/N3ghom1ZrRs/v-deo.html
Your conversion is really something special. I considered ordering one a while back but other priorities came up. Do you continue to receive orders? Did you do a large production run or small batches?
thanks. they were a labor of love. i just made 10 - cuz i wanted one forever and making just one is the most expensive possible way to make anything. when u have a setup tweaked to perfection, it's just too hard to tear it back down cuz that's when it starts paying off! i have 5 or so in boxes sitting there- lathes are hard to sell.
Hi! What is the maximum size you can turn with this micro lathe? I was thinking of using it to make some hub wheels and other round parts for my RC heavy machinery.
Well.. that might seem like a simple question but it's a bit tricky to answer. The absolute max diameter that could be attached to the spindle and would just touch the bed is 4.5 inches. However, with 1 inch riser blocks, that can be 6.5 inches. But can you turn a ~4.499 in diameter stock? Well the carriage and cross slide would need to float on the bed underneath the stock to do so in most cases and so now you're down to 2.375 in diameter or 4.375 with the riser blocks. However, with some effort you can technically extend a tool and turn ahead of the carriage and cross slide assembly and turn things closer to the 4.5 to 6.5 in diameters. I'm not sure if this link will work but if it doesn't, search for Deans Photography Taig Lathe and his rotary table project to see what is possible - very impressive. Here is the link: www.deansphotographica.com/machining/projects/mill/rotary/rotary1.html
The ER is probably preferred now as Taig is making most or all of the accessories (chucks, face plates, etc) with an ER option. The ER-16 spindle is an industry standard and uses ER-16 collets while the "standard" is just Taig's own design with spindle threads 3/4-16 and a 15 degree taper with their own custom made collets. One advantage to the standard is readily available collet blanks (one example of use - customizing a fastener head by tapping and threading and slotting and holding a fastener by the threaded part to machine the fastener head). Another odd use is on the mill, which comes standard with the ER spindle, is using the standard spindle and the ER adapter as a tool holder for CNC work, allowing for quick swapping of tooling. All that said, you can buy a standard spindle headstock (100-00) down the road and swap them out for whatever need you might find.
One awesome youtuber, Curt Filipowski makes his own and offers plans. Might be worth checking into if you are looking for a project! ua-cam.com/video/NXwMLj6VrIA/v-deo.html
I purchased two straight Allen hex drivers with a screwdriver type handle for my Taig Lathe from MSC. 5/32" for the tool post and 7/64" for the chuck soft jaws. Makes adjusting the tool post and changing the soft jaws much easier and faster. They were "PROTO" brand.
4:12 Not to motor axis. if motor is 5 degree angle "dramatic error" face will be still straight as x axis to z axis. you can think it as compount post you can turn chambers make it 89.99-90.01 well it look flat even it not xD, but motor nothing todo it. only thing is when you flip part will those faces be straight. they will not if motor is aligned correct even face could be flat as x axis is LOL
Amazing. I bought a Taig Micro for $90 at a flea market. This video is the perfect place to start after the assembly video from @TAIGTOOLS if you have a basic understanding of how a lathe works. Thank you for taking the time to produce this content years ago. Quick question. Is a simple cam made from CRS possible and simple to make on the Taig when the lathe is in factory configuration? The hole in the rotor section will be a slip fit and tack welded onto a 7mm steel motor shaft. Subbed for more novice Taig content! imgur.com/a/1PpLRiZ
Thank you for the positive feedback! Yes you should be able to make off center holes (e.g. camshaft parts) fairly easily using the 4 jaw chuck (independent jaw version). Drilling or boring a few mm off center would be fairly simple. CRS is machinable as well, no big deal, just need to take light cuts and hone / sharpen as needed.
1/4 hp motor, a machine you can pick up and move to another bench by simply unplugging and moving by hand... one quiet enough you can use in your apartment and not disturb your roommate in the room next door. Larger cuts can be taken but not too much larger. These are about as small as you can get for a lathe and still be able to make some real machined projects. Also love to dawdle :-P
Awesome video, your videos have been the most helpful I've found for how to use my Tiag. You mentioned the top view camera which is awesome. If you do more I would swap the top view camera persepective so it's from your view. That way it matches the perspective of the user and you don't have to swap to the other side of the mill to line a tool up in the same perspective. Hope you make more of these!
Thank you for these videos. I just bought a Taig and your videos have been useful.
Very well made video and full of information for someone like myself who does not even have a lathe just yet..
Please keep them coming 👍
Hello from France, your tutorials are very interesting and cool for neewbie like me. Thank you.
Glad I watched your video. I was considering a Taig lathe but after seeing just how much manual manipulation must be done, I don’t think its the machine for me. Thank you
Glad it was helpful!
Great video. Maybe you can machine an entire project on the Taig lathe and turn it into a series?
Great idea. I have an old steam engine kit laying around - was thinking about doing a series on building it on the Taig. Thanks for the feedback!
If you catch the end of the file on the rotating chuck jaws, you may need to have the file surgically removed! I have launched a couple wood blocks on my table saws, but have taken care to stand off center, so they missed. File handles are recommended too.
do you happen to know if the top slide can rotate? i assume not but do they perhaps sell a kit that would allow it to?
Great tutorial and glad this video is doing well
another excellent video, how about doing one for attaching a screw less vise to the taig milling attachment, the vise they offer works but the addition of a small 2 inch screw less would increase the use and accuracy of the taig
Excellent video. I have just got one of these lathes and am so impressed at how clear you are in your videos. I would like to make some chess pieces, maybe an idea for a video of yours...?
Good idea! I’ve seen some very tiny chess pieces made on the Taig along with a tiny box to hold them and the board. Thanks for the feedback, I will get back to making some more videos soon. Chess pieces now on the list :)
@@desktoplathes ,
Please provide the address of the dealer/distributor of this machine, in *Indonesia* .
Please, please do not use a file without a wooden handle on a lathe. For those who are inexperienced , if the chuck jaws catch the file even by the slightest amount the file will be kicked back and the sharp tang will peneterate your hand. A visit to A&E is not what you want on a Sunday morning or any other day for that matter. Only use a file with a well fitted round wooden handle.
To add to this, never file reaching over the headstock, that is a really bad idea. hold the file facing the headstock opposite of how we observed in this video. One slip and you are crashing your wrist into a rotating headstock that will happily rip your hand off.
Are you still open for questions? I have a Taig 1 (?), one of the first. Shop is not more. Bought it so 30 years ago. Did not use it often and it did , looked like, ok. Love it and now I have more time for the Taig and try to improve it. But, found a few strange things in it, simply because I use it more. Missing rings, bolds that ware not properly bored or tapped and so on. Simple things but do not like them. Where can I ask for some help in this matter? You?
I've been going back and forth between getting a Taig or a Harbor Freight mini-lathe. The Taig looks like it has an excellent build quality, but as this would be my first lathe I wonder if the lack of a leadscrew and gearing would hamper my learning. Not to mention the Harbor Freight costs half as much as the Taig. Do you have any recommendation? I'm still waffling.
That's a tough call. I've used a friend's HF mini lathe it worked well. His used steel gibs (vs brass) and didn't come with collets or a drill chuck. The gears were plastic, basically every corner was cut but still it is a reasonable deal with the 20% coupon. I don't think you'd regret either purchase. The Taig is quite a bit higher quality and more portable. Also it comes with ER collets, tooling, and drill chuck at the similar price point (is much lower cost without). As for threading the Taig can only do so with dies and taps so you are limited to standard diameters. One advantage of single point threading is you can thread at a wide range of diameters so if you plan to need that I'd pick the HF unit. If you just want to tinker and play around I'd recommend the Taig and if the machining bug takes, then jump a couple levels to a larger lathe, not just a mini. I ended up buying an old used 13 inch south bend with gear change box and the thing is, the Taig still gets used. I like the Taig for very small things and of course the south bend for larger. Hope that helps!
Parting off a 1” steel rod. I’m used to doing much smaller pieces and working with brass or aluminum. I’ve been struggling with this hunk of steel for a week and ruined all the work I’ve done so far trying to part it off.
Melissa Boling - I should do a parting video! Are you using the standard parting tool or the back post version? What type of steel? If parting goes south, just use a hack saw. Always use cutting oil with steel. Low speed, continuous feed, try and keep a chip going. Make sure the tool is square and sharp... probably more tips I haven’t thought of!
@@desktoplathes"I should do a parting video!" ... agreed and link it to this one in the description.
Have you thought about getting a carbide holder for aluminium inserts? You could turn and face with the tool in the same position. The lathe would find it so much easier, as the high rake on the insert should require much less power.
this is done very well.
i'd like to add a caution- never ever ever let the far end of a file or any tool approach the spinning jaws and always hold the tool in such a way that if the jaw smacks it it will send it flying rather than hammer it into your hand. don't ask how i learned that, plz.
Thanks sig! and good point on the file... always have to use caution with machine tools. The Taig is relatively safe compared with larger lathes. I've managed to do a few silly things that fortunately did not result in injury due to the Taig's smaller size.
Watching that file waiting to stab you made me shiver all over.
@@desktoplathes ,
Please provide the address of the dealer/distributor of this machine, in *Indonesia* .
What do you think of the power feed. It is a very unique setup, the concept is very good as long as it works reliability.
The power feed is great! It’s a clever and elegant design. However it’s a little tricky to explain to folks... I might do a short video just going over that feature.
I have a crazy idea of buying buying a Taig lathe with power feed without the headstock. I will custom make a head stock with taper roller bearings. The spindle will be threaded to fit my 1"-8 scroll chucks I recently purchased. I have a bar of 303 stainless I will use for spindle. This material is easy to thread with a very smooth surface. I wish it was 416, The usefulness and quality of the power feed will determine if I go with this option. I would like to see close details of the power feed in use. My plan is to take a heavier cut without chatter than what is possible with the standard lathe. Yes I realize many factors come into play. I plan on eliminating two of them.
John Walters - Go for it. We learn the most when we try things out, whether they go as planned or otherwise, can’t go wrong!
My basic lathe with power feed is on order. I have the bearings and aluminum for a 1"-8 headstock and am working on my tailstock with 4" of travel. This machine is on steroids. I like to help out the American Taig whenever possible.
@@desktoplathes ,
Please provide the address of the dealer/distributor of this machine, in *Indonesia* .
It would be cool to see a series where one of these is converted to CNC
I considered it but then saw that youtuber "sig other" did a conversion and offered it for sale a while back. Taig now offers a version of their Mill base modified for CNC lathe work. Here is sig other's vid ua-cam.com/video/N3ghom1ZrRs/v-deo.html
well thanks for watching. i do have more.
Your conversion is really something special. I considered ordering one a while back but other priorities came up. Do you continue to receive orders? Did you do a large production run or small batches?
thanks. they were a labor of love. i just made 10 - cuz i wanted one forever and making just one is the most expensive possible way to make anything. when u have a setup tweaked to perfection, it's just too hard to tear it back down cuz that's when it starts paying off! i have 5 or so in boxes sitting there- lathes are hard to sell.
Please provide the address of the dealer/distributor of this machine, in *Indonesia* .
Very helpful! Excellent Teacher!
Hi! What is the maximum size you can turn with this micro lathe? I was thinking of using it to make some hub wheels and other round parts for my RC heavy machinery.
Well.. that might seem like a simple question but it's a bit tricky to answer. The absolute max diameter that could be attached to the spindle and would just touch the bed is 4.5 inches. However, with 1 inch riser blocks, that can be 6.5 inches. But can you turn a ~4.499 in diameter stock? Well the carriage and cross slide would need to float on the bed underneath the stock to do so in most cases and so now you're down to 2.375 in diameter or 4.375 with the riser blocks. However, with some effort you can technically extend a tool and turn ahead of the carriage and cross slide assembly and turn things closer to the 4.5 to 6.5 in diameters. I'm not sure if this link will work but if it doesn't, search for Deans Photography Taig Lathe and his rotary table project to see what is possible - very impressive. Here is the link: www.deansphotographica.com/machining/projects/mill/rotary/rotary1.html
What are the differences between the "er" and "standard" spindles on the website and why would I want one over the other?
The ER is probably preferred now as Taig is making most or all of the accessories (chucks, face plates, etc) with an ER option. The ER-16 spindle is an industry standard and uses ER-16 collets while the "standard" is just Taig's own design with spindle threads 3/4-16 and a 15 degree taper with their own custom made collets. One advantage to the standard is readily available collet blanks (one example of use - customizing a fastener head by tapping and threading and slotting and holding a fastener by the threaded part to machine the fastener head). Another odd use is on the mill, which comes standard with the ER spindle, is using the standard spindle and the ER adapter as a tool holder for CNC work, allowing for quick swapping of tooling. All that said, you can buy a standard spindle headstock (100-00) down the road and swap them out for whatever need you might find.
Love my Taig but the set screw bent Allen tool post is a royal pain. I don't use it enough to invest in a QC tool post but there must be a better way
One awesome youtuber, Curt Filipowski makes his own and offers plans. Might be worth checking into if you are looking for a project! ua-cam.com/video/NXwMLj6VrIA/v-deo.html
I purchased two straight Allen hex drivers with a screwdriver type handle for my Taig Lathe from MSC. 5/32" for the tool post and 7/64" for the chuck soft jaws. Makes adjusting the tool post and changing the soft jaws much easier and faster. They were "PROTO" brand.
4:12 Not to motor axis. if motor is 5 degree angle "dramatic error" face will be still straight as x axis to z axis. you can think it as compount post you can turn chambers make it 89.99-90.01 well it look flat even it not xD, but motor nothing todo it. only thing is when you flip part will those faces be straight. they will not if motor is aligned correct even face could be flat as x axis is LOL
Thank you
Wow.
Amazing. I bought a Taig Micro for $90 at a flea market. This video is the perfect place to start after the assembly video from @TAIGTOOLS if you have a basic understanding of how a lathe works. Thank you for taking the time to produce this content years ago. Quick question. Is a simple cam made from CRS possible and simple to make on the Taig when the lathe is in factory configuration? The hole in the rotor section will be a slip fit and tack welded onto a 7mm steel motor shaft. Subbed for more novice Taig content! imgur.com/a/1PpLRiZ
Thank you for the positive feedback! Yes you should be able to make off center holes (e.g. camshaft parts) fairly easily using the 4 jaw chuck (independent jaw version). Drilling or boring a few mm off center would be fairly simple. CRS is machinable as well, no big deal, just need to take light cuts and hone / sharpen as needed.
@@desktoplathes ,
Please provide the address of the dealer/distributor of this machine, in *Indonesia* .
if part cost how long it take.this is money machine xD
Why these minuscule cuts? Finish? Like to dawdle? Vibration/flex? Wimpy power?
1/4 hp motor, a machine you can pick up and move to another bench by simply unplugging and moving by hand... one quiet enough you can use in your apartment and not disturb your roommate in the room next door. Larger cuts can be taken but not too much larger. These are about as small as you can get for a lathe and still be able to make some real machined projects. Also love to dawdle :-P
Можно по русски, хахаах